


Every Star in the Universe

by Jemima_Puddleduck



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gallifrey, Hurt/Comfort, I made Missy cry again seriously someone stop me, Missy is good, The Doctor is literally so nice like wtf, The Vault (Doctor Who), twissy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-12-04 10:20:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11553177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jemima_Puddleduck/pseuds/Jemima_Puddleduck
Summary: Missy is yearning for the outside world after being locked away for over seventy years. The Doctor, not wanting to break his vow, finds a way to bring it to her.





	Every Star in the Universe

"I miss it." Missy announced one evening while The Doctor was visiting. 

"Miss what?" He answered dumbly, glancing up from the pile of unmarked essays spread over her coffee table. 

"The outside." She sighed heavily. "I haven't seen the real sky for seventy years." 

The Doctor's eyes widened and he looked stricken. "You know I can't take you outside. I swore an oath." 

Missy's eyes flicked to her feet. "I know. I wasn't asking. It's all my own fault anyway." She mumbled sadly. 

"I'm sorry Missy, I wish I could." The Doctor said pitifully, hating the state his best friend had been reduced to. 

She didn't reply. The Doctor's chair scraped noisily across the floorboards as he made to go to her. The corners of her mouth twitched as she felt his soft lips brush her forehead. Her stiff, hunched shoulders relaxed again at the feel of his comforting fingers brushing her arm. Before she could say anything his touch was gone and a sense of emptiness washed over her. 

"Goodnight Missy." He said, almost a whisper. 

She didn't look up until she heard the familiar crunch of the door sliding along the floor. 

\--------------------------

The Doctor crept back into the vault two hours later. He glanced over at the silhouette of shocking purple against the pure white bedsheets and heard small sighs dancing across the vault. Sound asleep. 

The plan was simple enough, but took a while to complete by himself. He stayed all night, creating his masterpiece. 

The Doctor came to realise that since her incarceration, Missy was much more restless in her sleep. Her crimson lips were constantly moving, soundless prayers and pleas falling from her lips. Her legs kicked out at nothing, her arms grappled at empty air. The more The Doctor saw, the more his hearts began to rip at the seams. He hated to see her in such distress. He longed for the little boy who would talk with him till the early hours and then keep him up the rest of the night with his contented snoring. He wanted to reach out, to wrap him arms around her and tell her that he'd fix it, that he would take the pain away and make her better again. He just hoped that his gesture would go some way to putting her back together again. 

\-------------------------

Shafts of light poured into the vault through its artificial windows and pooled over Missy, who lay sprawled out over the bedcovers. She squinted in the harsh daylight and sat up blearily, shading her stinging eyes with her hand. 

The vault came into focus slowly, and as it did, Missy had to wonder whether she really was still dreaming. The floor had become a plush carpet of burnt red grass that was soft and springy against Missy's bare feet as she stood and took it all in. 

A huge gaping sky loomed overhead, a hologram designed to look just like the Gallifreyan sky. It appeared to swirl and tumble in front of her eyes, red pooling into orange, twisting and shifting as she watched. The twin suns blazed and she could almost imagine the familiar heat on her back once again. The blades of grass tickled between her toes, just the same as they did years before, when she would run for miles across the deep red fields. 

Missy padded over to one of the many trees now scattered throughout the vault. She gasped softly as she reached up and took one of the shining silver leaves in her fingers. The trees were genuine. There was no mistaking those leaves. She could never have forgotten that cool, silky texture against her skin as they slipped through her fingers. 

It was only then that she realised she was crying. The tiny pocket of Gallifrey blurred before her eyes and emotion finally overcame her. As the tears tracked down her cheeks, she was glad that The Doctor wasn't with her. She didn't want him to see her in this state, completely overwhelmed and losing control. She was overcome with gratitude. The Doctor must have trawled the universe looking for the things to bing a tiny piece of home to her in her darkest hour. She finally collapsed to the floor and planted her hands into the plush red carpet, combing her hands though the grass to bring her back to reality.

"Welcome home Koschei." A gentle voice whispered behind her. The Doctor had emerged from her bathroom and was smiling crookedly at her from the doorway.

"Theta." She whispered hoarsely, his name the only word in her throat. She whispered it again, breathless and almost pained, and it nearly broke his hearts. "Theta."

"I couldn't take you outside." He said simply, as if it explained everything. 

Missy burst into tears then, the heaving sobs of gratitude ripped from her chest. The Doctor was soon by her side, gathering her up into his wiry arms. She buried her head into her shoulder and let her tears soak into into the fabric of his jacket. She hadn't cried like this in centuries and The Doctor knew that. He held her closer still, drawing her towards him. She held him back just as tightly, fisting her hands into the back of his jacket. Her grip screamed for him to not let go, and he gripped her back to show her that he never would. 

"I did this for you." He told her gently. "Every bit." 

"Why?" 

His soft smile faltered. She really didn't know how much he truly cared for her. For all her outward airs and graces, she really thought very little of herself. "Because I wanted you to know that you're not alone. I wanted to show you that I'm on your side." 

"You even smell like home." She whispered, her voice cracking painfully.  A fresh wave of silent tears fell across her cheeks. 

Th Doctor didn't know how long they sat in that red grass together, with Missy crying into his shirt under those familiar trees with the perfect silver leaves. The sobs became quiet sniffles, which faded out into gentle hiccups. The Doctor rubbed her back comfortingly, soothing away the tension and letting her slump into him.  She was wrung out and exhausted, so The Doctor made to scoop her up and carry her to bed. Missy resisted, planting her feet into the ground. 

"You need to rest, you've exhausted yourself." He said gently, brushing the stray hairs away from her face tenderly. 

"Let me sleep down here. The grass smells like home." She whispered back. He conceded and she curled up in the deep red blades of grass, sighing contentedly. The Doctor took a pillow from her bed and she let him place in under her head. 

"Stay with me." She ventured cautiously, a note of pleading in her voice. 

Without another word, The Doctor curled up beside her and wrapped a protective arm around her waist. His seeking hand clasped hers and he could feel the steady thumping of her hearts in her wrist. She snuggled back into him, pressing her body against his, seeking his touch. His other hand wound its way up and slowly brushed her hair. She hummed appreciatively as he curled the thick black strands around his fingers.  

"The grass feels the same." She mumbled. "Just like when we were kids."

"Hmm." The Doctor affirmed. "We ran for hours and hours, until our mothers were worried sick. You always said the telling off was worth it."

Missy chuckled quietly, then her face faltered. "Where did they go, those kids?" She asked him sadly.

"Far away." The Doctor replied gently. "But we can make them proud."

"Can I come with you? You know, when I get out of here." She asked slowly.

"We can go and see every star, just like we promised." The Doctor whispered back, making her shiver. They both shifted to look at the artificial sky above, the shifting red and orange blazing over their heads and they lay side by side, fingers interwoven. 

For just one moment, they could imagine they were those children again. Theta and Koschei, dreaming of the universe.


End file.
